input gain -24 dB

crawford

My MicW i436 microphone input gain setting was -24 dB. That was the default setting. I have left it there since. However, yesterday I experimented changing it to 0 dB. Today the microphone does not seem to work. Two questions, what should the gain setting be and did I blow the mic out?

benfaber

@crawford,

Which version of SignalScope Pro you are running? Which operating system are you running it on? On which device (Mac, iPhone, iPad, which model)?

The gain setting should be set according to your specific needs. Depending on the specific hardware you are using, a lower gain (-24 dB) should allow the mic to measure higher sound levels before clipping. A higher gain (0 dB) should be used when you want to measure lower sound levels.

I'm not sure what you mean by "blow the mic out," but changing the input gain won't harm the mic. When you say that it doesn't work, what exactly do you mean? Is there no signal at all? Does the signal appear distorted?

crawford

I'm using SignalScope Pro v12.2, Mac OS on Mac computer. The mic does not work at all now. I usually use the Multi-Tool with FFT, oscilloscope, and meter. There is no activity in any of them when I start it up, except the elapsed time clock. This first occurred the next day after I was playing with the gain level, so I wondered if there was a correlation. If not, any other suggestions besides buy a new mic? I do have a MicW i437L also, so I'm still up and running. Thanks.

benfaber

Thank you for the additional info. The fact that the i437L is working rules out some possibilities (like mic access being disallowed in the Mac's Privacy & Security settings). I just tested things out with an i436 mic and I found that if you reduce the gain all the way in the Audio MIDI Setup app, the Mute will automatically engage. Even though SignalScope and Audio MIDI keep their gain settings synchronized, adjusting the gain down in SignalScope should not cause the input to be muted. Please open the Audio MIDI Setup app (in /Applications/Utilities) and see if the input is muted for the i436 mic. Either way, please let me know if that's what has caused the missing signal from the mic.

crawford

Thank you. The Audio MIDI was indeed set to mute. The only thing I did was to change the gain in Signalscope, and if that didn't trigger the Audio MIDI to mute itself, I don't know what did. I can experiment further, but for now, thanks again.